A.Word.A.Day

A.Word.A.Day--purple prose

This week's theme: words with color as metaphors.

purple prose (PUR-puhl proz) noun

An overly ornate piece of writing.

[Two synonyms of the term are 'purple passage' and 'purple patch'. The idea
comes from Latin pannus purpureus (purple patch), a phrase used by the poet
Horace in his Ars Poetica (The Art of Poetry) to suggest a patch of royal
fabric on an ordinary cloth, a brilliant piece of writing in an overall
dull work. Purple was the color of choice by the royalty as the purple dye
was the rarest and hence most expensive.]

-Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org)

"How much purple prose will they have to suffer through just to find
the dang necklace?"
Amanda Henry; King of the World? The Tampa Tribune (Florida); Dec 18, 2007.

X-Bonus

Our heads are round so that thoughts can change direction. -Francis
Picabia, painter and poet (1879-1953)